


Escape this town for a little while

by skymoonlight



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Established Relationship, M/M, Modern Royalty, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:20:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29504007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skymoonlight/pseuds/skymoonlight
Summary: Mark, soon-to-be-king of Orbiris, decides to spend his evening tasting pastries for his coronation in Donghyuck's bakery. It goes exactly how he expected (or better).
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 4
Kudos: 47
Collections: Challenge #5 - I heard a secret..





	Escape this town for a little while

**Author's Note:**

> The tittle is from ["Love Story"](https://open.spotify.com/track/3CeCwYWvdfXbZLXFhBrbnf?si=tQdB2kfcQGSDPT9SP5eCZg)

“May you have a lovely day, Your Majesty” Donghyuck bowed respectfully in front of the queen, turning his head to his right and making a little nod to the blond boy besides him before directing his eyes to the big door of the palace in front of him. “You Highness, please lead the way.”

“Goodbye, mother. Once I’m done with the tasting of the pastries, I’m thinking of taking a walk through the city, so don’t wait for me for lunch.” After hearing a “Good bye, dear. Have fun.” Mark bowed his head respectfully and started walking to the garden, a fancy car waiting for him and Donghyuck to take them to the latter’s bakery.

“How are the preparations for the upcoming coronation, Your Highness? The big day seems closer and closer every day” Donghyuck had taken the seat on the left side, watching out the window as they passed through the wealthiest neighborhoods. 

No matter how many times, for a variety of reasons, he went to the palace, it never stopped to amazed him; everything was so different from what he was used to, the sight foreign to his eyes, houses too big for the amount of people living in them, big trees in various tones of green with fruits and colorful flowers adorning the streets as clean as a freshly polished diamond, stores with prices too high for the quality of the products they sold, and people wearing extravagant pieces of clothes that didn’t suit them just for the mere fact they allowed them to show off their wealth.

“They’re fine,now, but at the beginning it felt a bit overwhelming. It was a lot of things to do in a short period of time, it was like everything was moving too much and too fast, you know?” Mark looked down to his lap, both hands instinctively positioned one over the other, his mind recalling the time right before the responsibilities he never thought belonged to him were put on his shoulders. 

“The dissertation of my brother caught everyone off guard. I don’t know why, honestly. It was clear as day that Johnny was a free spirit, always finding excuses to travel far, far away from the palace; he never liked the pressure and extra attention that comes with the title, and he’d rather live a normal life than spend the rest of his days sitting on the throne. He already had all eyes on him 24/7, and becoming king would have amplified everything 10 times more. It wasn’t a secret how he felt, but my parents chose to look the other way and ignored what was obvi—” A loud cough came from the front of the car, a not-so-subtle signal from the family’s driver to let him know that he was sharing too much information with someone he shouldn’t. Donghyuck was just another peasant, if anything, he could tell this to his dog and it wouldn’t make much of a difference—well, maybe it would, Mark had given the title of honorary princess to his dog Daegal the day it was gifted to him by someone really special to him. To this day, it remained a mystery to everyone in the palace how the prince had gotten the dog. So yeah, in theory, even his puppy was more worthy of hearing his rant than the boy sat in front of him.

“Uh...anyways,” Mark continued, a little flustered and avoiding the digging glance that Taeil was giving him through the front mirror, “the point is, the fact that my parents decided to keep the same date for the coronation that was originally planned for my brother, has put the preparations on a tight schedule, having to start everything from zero with less time to have it done than it was planned.”

“It sounds really exhausting and stressful, but I’m sure everything’s going to get better once the ceremony is over. You’re a natural leader, You Highness, and the people love you, so they will most certainly welcome you with open arms after you become their new king.” Donghyuck sounded sincere, a small smile making it way to his lips while Taeil was too focused on the ride to pay them attention.

“Thanks, Hyu—Donghyuck. It means a lot. And thanks for taking care of the food for the ceremony, and for my dancing lessons, too. I must say, I was really surprised when I saw you introducing yourself as my new dance instructor. I’m glad you accepted to take Li Yong Qin’s place, though; his broken ankle wasn’t part of the plan. It really comes in handy that the best baker in town turns out to be the dancing prodigy of the kingdom, it makes it easier to check both things out of the endless list of things to do.”

“Thanks, Your Highness, it’s an honor to work for you as well. I’ll do my best to make things easier for you.”

**👑**

“Your Highness, we’ve arrived.” Taeil turned around to face Mark, checking through the windows of both sides, an unpleasant expression on his face. “Do you want me to wait for you? This doesn’t seem to be the best area, it could be dangerous for you.”

“Thanks, but that won’t be necessary.” Faster than it was required, Mark opened his own door and jumped out of the car, Donghyuck following him and keeping a respectful distance between the two. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to leave, but please, don’t wait for me, I’m sure mother has way more important appointments she needs to attend to, and I rather you being the one who is in charge of driving her.” And with that, Mark waved him goodbye, the older following his instructions with not much enthusiasm. 

Mark enjoyed visiting the different villages of the kingdom, an activity his mother wasn’t much fond of, but he liked it regardless, the thought of knowing how his people were living, what did they need, what he could help them with and what he, as a prince—and now as future king, could do to give them the best live he could offer them. His parents usually pretended to listen to him, accepting his reports of which schools needed more fundings and which hospitals could make use of more supplies, but never doing anything with them. Now Mark had the chance to actually do something, and the thought made his fears of accepting his title disappear for a while.

Donghyuck was in front of him, looking at the bakery in front of them, it wasn’t as big as the ones where Mark’s birthday cakes were brought, but it was homey, it gave the sensation that the product were made with each clients in mind and, knowing Donghyuck, they probably were. 

Both boys were about to go into the store when two kids came running to Donghyuck, screaming with joy and clinging to his legs.

“What’s up, little demons?” Donghyuck teased, but he looked at the boys with fond eyes, taking the younger one in his arms while the other ran around him until he ran out of breath..

“We missed you” The older narrowed his eyes, suspicious, “...and we came to see if you had any leftover we could eat” The boy had black hair and whisker dimples, looking at Donghyuck with puppy eyes.

“That’s more like it. I don’t know if there’s anything left, I was busy working on the samples for You Highn—'' Donghyuck's eyes went wide when he realized the prince was behind him, being ignored by the three of them. Quickly, the boy put down the kid he was holding, who pouted in protest, and made them greet Mark. 

“I’m so sorry, Your Highness. Kids, this is Lee Minghyung, prince of Obiris and your future king.”

“Good evening, You Highness” The boys said in unison, bowing to show respect.

“Your Highness, these are Chenle and Jisung, they’re my neighbours and they go to school two blocks away, so they come here often to eat some of the things that don’t sell.”

“I see...well, good evening to you too, Chenle and Jisung. I’m Lee Minghyung, but you can call me Mark” He knelt to be at the same height as the kids. “Why don’t we enter the bakery to see what Donghyuck has inside?” And with that, the boys started smiling again, a bit more relaxed.

Since Donghyuck didn’t open the store that day, the windows were closed, the only source of light being the rooflight in the corner of the place, giving a warm atmosphere to the place. After a few minutes, Donghyuck finished putting all the samples on the table, a clipboard on his hand ready to take notes and an apologetic smile on his face.

“Sorry, guys, but there isn’t anything left, you can tomorrow and I’ll bake cookies to make it up for it, ok?”

The kids nodded with a pout on their faces. Before they left, Mark had an idea.

“Wait, this is a lot of things for myself, why don’t you guys help me try them? I’d like to have a second, and third, opinion.”

Their faces lit up at the offer, running back to their seats and ready to try every sweet Donghyuck had prepared, the latter watching the three of them with a soft smile on his face.

Two hours and three glasses of water later, the tasting had finished, all of Donghyuck’s preparations were approved without complaints, and the kids were practically falling asleep on the table, bellies full of food and eyes closing every few seconds.

“All right, I think it is time for you two to go home and take a nap.” Donghyuck gave the boys a forehead kiss and Mark ruffled their hair before waving them goodbye, closing the door once they left.

“Well, good job, now you’re their second favorite. After me, of course.” Donghyuck stepped closer to Mark, who was still sitting in front of the counter, now facing him.

“I hope so, they’re lovely, and you clearly care about them. Also, I wouldn’t like to be on your bad side” Now that the boy was in front of him, he put his hands on his hips, bringing him closer.

“Hmm, that’s true. Good thing you’re just in the right place.” With one last step, Donghyuck closed the gap between them, his arms instinctively moving to Mark’s shoulders while their lips found their way to each other.

It didn’t matter how many times they did this—and they did it a lot—it always felt like the first time, a tugging at the pit of his stomach and his heart fluttering incessantly in his ribcage, like wanting to escape and settle right beside Mark’s. Mark kissed him like he was the most precious thing he had, gentle but firmly, with confidence and determination, letting him know that even if they had to act like merely acquaintances on the outside, he was much more than that to him. And Donghyuck loved him for it, because Mark never made him feel inferior, not even when they first met 5 years ago, Donghyuck being just the boy that delivered Mark’s favorite cupcakes. That day, he had given the prince his heart and Mark had made a wonderful job cheshiring it and showering him with love every time they met, between short escapades to the lake, kisses in empty hallways, behind the bushes, and endless “rounds to see the other villages” that were often used as an excuse to spend as much time together as they could.

Mark always tried his best to be with him, and now he was, right there, arms firmly around Donghyuck, hands moving slowly through his torso while the younger tugged a little too hard on his hair, getting a moan out of the prince that was quickly muffled with his tongue exploring every place of the boy’s mouth.

“I missed you” Gasping, Mark put their foreheads together while trying to catch his breath. “You don’t know how happy it made me when my mom told me today that my new dance instructor was there, and you showed up.”

“Yeah? Well, I know that I retired from dancing last year, but when the offer showed up, the chance of being close to you without need of an excuse was too good to reject it. Besides,” Donghyuck gave him a quick peck on the lips, and on the nose, and on both eyelids, “I wanted to see your face when you realized that it was me.”

“Well, that explains it, I was wondering why you didn’t tell me, I was so shocked that I almost ran to you without thinking.” 

“You shouldn’t be so shocked, though. You know I’m a man of many talents.” A cheeky smile appeared on his face and Mark just wanted to wipe it out of his face with a kiss. So he did exactly that.

“Many talents, huh? Care to share some of them with me?” 

“Oh, I don’t know if you’d be able to handle it. I fear that one of them could end up with you on your knees, _Your Highness._ ” A wicked smile appeared on Donghyuck’s face at the sight of the dilated pupils of Mark, who didn’t want to waste any more minute, taking him by the hand and running through the stairs to the second floor, where the former’s bedroom took place.

👑

The sun was running its course, the sunset visible through Donghyuck’s window as Mark drew invisible patterns over the lovebites he had left on the boy’s body, a peaceful silence setting over them.

“I don’t want the coronation’s day to come” It came in a whisper, as low that if Donghyuck weren’t right beside Mark, he wouldn’t have been able to hear him.

“If the preparations are stressing you too much, you could tell your mother, maybe she could hire more staff to take care of everything.”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just—Ughh!” Mark whined and hid his face on the crook of Donghyuck’s shoulder. “What if I’m not good enough? What if I mess things up? What if the people don’t see me as a leader? I don’t think I am able to take so much responsibility by myself. For all I know, I could cause a war on my first day as a king and I probably wouldn’t even know why.”

Donghyuck sat up, took both of Mark’s hands and pressed a kiss over them. “Look,” he said, running circles over his knuckles,”I know it’s scary, and I know it wasn’t what you had in mind for your life to be. But I want you to engrave this on your brain. Royalty or not, you _are_ a natural leader. People respect you for being _you_ , not for being Lee Minghyung, prince of Orbiris or whatever; they respect you because you don’t judge without knowing, you treat everyone with kindness and as an equal, from the poorest people here to the highest member of society, you treat them as humans. 

You don’t think of yourself as superior to the rest, you listen to people and you do what you can to help them. And now, you will actually have the power to do all the things you always wanted to do but your parents rejected. You’re full of ideas, Mark, and now you can make them reality.

Yes, it is a lot of responsibility, but you won’t be alone. Mark, you have plenty of people who love you and will willingly be part of the new era that begins with you. Yukhei has been waiting ages to become a royal guard and you know he would risk his life for you if he has to, Johnny didn’t want to be on the spot but he would never turn his back to you, Renjun, Jaemin and Jeno have been your friends since birth and they’ve wanted to be part of the Privy Council since forever, always put on hold because they’re ‘too young’, and me...well, I don’t have much to offer, but you have me, too. You’re not alone, Mark, we got your back, and I _know_ that you’ll be the best leader this kingdom has ever had. Are we clear?”

Mark hadn’t realized he had started crying until Donghyuck wiped his tears away, his gentle fingers caressing his face as he melted in the touch.

“Thank you for believing in me, for being by my side unconditionally. And for being the best thing that had ever happened to me.” Mark got closer and gave Donghyuck a tight hug, his words muffled by the boy’s hair, but still clear as day. “I love you, I promise that after the coronation passes we won’t have to hide anymore, just wait a few more weeks.”

Now was Donghyuck the one with tears in his eyes; looking directly at Mark, he pulled him in a kiss, it was short but sweet and intense. “I love you too, and don’t worry, you know I won’t hurry you to do anything. I understand why things have been like that, and I’m fine with it. When the time comes, we’ll let them know. Besides” He had recovered, a playful grin making its way to his face. “You can’t deny the rush of adrenaline when we’re together is kinda fun.”

“Oh, I hate you.” Rolling his eyes, Mark kissed him again, a smile on his face the whole time.

👑

“Have a good day, You Highness. I’ll come back to the palace on Thursday to our scheduled lesson.” Donghyuck bowed in front of Mark, who tilted his head and said goodbye as well.

“Are we ready to depart, Your Highness?” Taeil asked, waiting patiently for Mark’s answer, the car’s door already open.

“Yes, we can go now.” 

“You’re going to be an amazing leader, Mark Lee.” Donghyuck whispered to himself with a mellow smile, the car getting lost on their way to the palace.

**Author's Note:**

> aaaaand that's it, thanks for reading, kudos and comments are really appreciated ❤️  
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/fairieaurora)  
> [cc](https://curiouscat.me/fairieaurora)


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